MovieChat Forums > Quiz Show (1994) Discussion > MAJOR goof

MAJOR goof

posted 19 years ago by cableaddict
52 replies | jump to latest

It's a little late to be mentioning this, but as I watched this movie today one part of the screenplay jumped out and slapped me in the face.

In the end courtroom scene, Charles VanDoren reads the following from his prepared speech: "I had all the breaks. Everything came too easy."

Say what? That is blatantly incorrect use of the English language. The proper wording would be, "Everything came too easily."

Van Doren had a PHD in English Literature, and would never, NEVER have made such a mistake. Not a chance.

You may think I'm being overly picky, but the gradual dissintegration of the English language seems to be escalating, and it's something that makes me a little nuts.
The above type of mistake is incredibly common, and quite sad. A similar gaff is when someone says, " ... it was over really QUICK."

These mistakes are almost as offensive as the moronic but pervasive use of the word "fun," as in: "We went to a party last night, and it was really FUN."

Sad.

[–] CrashRiley 19 years ago

It would be interesting to see just exactly what Charles Van Doren actually said to the congressional committee (not a "court", if we're going to be picky).

He might actually have said "easy", if he happened to be nervous, or was attempting to be colloquial.

[–] torreydeluca 19 years ago

I know that the speech which Ralph Fiennes makes at the end of the movie pretty much follows what Charles van Doren said word-for-word at his Congressional testimony. I'll have to look it up in a book I have around somewhere and see what Charlie really said; but there's a good chance he did say "easy" and not "easily".

[–] cableaddict 19 years ago

torreydeluca,

If you have such a resource, please do look it up and let us know. I guess it's a minor point, but I sure would like to know the answer.

-thanks.

BTW: Maybe I should have written, "I SURELY would like to know the answer." That's what happens with this kind of thing, eventually the incorrect grammar starts to sound correct to you. Makes me nuts......

[–] walrus29 19 years ago

Really. Testifying before Congress about an extremely scandalous situation would make any man nervous. (And, if you watch Fiennes's performance, he does appear to be understandably tense.)

I don't see how this is a "MAJOR goof." Many intelligent and educated people frequently use adjectives in place of adverbs while speaking, although they would never dare to do so in writing. And, even in prepared speeches, the most distinguished of all people can slip into a less composed state and speak with errors. Just look at some famous politicians' infamously ridiculous vocalized blunders.

[–] cableaddict 18 years ago

Good point, Walrus, although he was reading from a prepared speech that had been written down, so it still bugs me a little.

I guess I'm just too picky.

[–] avenark 18 years ago

Maybe it's insane of me to point this out, but the word "easy" can be used as an adjective and as an adverb. So "everything came too easy" is actually totally fine. But this is debatable, since I looked it up in Webster's and Oxford, and Oxford did not have "easy" down as anything more than an adjective, though Webster's did.

[–] Bond007rlz 18 years ago

I think the MOST IMPORTANT point here to remember, is that Cable Addict is an anal retentive dork.

"NILBOG is Goblin spelt backwards!"

[–] lizardking1726 18 years ago

guys really now, who really cares, its 2 letters, get over it, and whats wrong with that statement it was really fun. Theres no improper grammar there.An adverb can describe an adjective. Same with it was over very quick. Adverb describes and adjective. it would be like me saying this board is really stupid and pointless or i cant believe i wasted my time posting on this incredibly uptight board.

[–] jrtf83 18 years ago

jesus, and they let people like you VOTE?!? haha, j/k. but the problem with the sentence "it was over very quick." is that the proper useage is "it was over very quickly." the issue is not the use of the word very, but with the use of the word quick. I'm not sure what's wrong with saying something is fun though...

[–] jbartelone 14 years ago

Van Doren's speech in the movie is condensed for time. In reality it was about 3-4 pages long. The only quote that was added in by Redford for dramatic effect was the phrase:

"I have flown too high, on borrowed wings." It's a wonderful quote, but is not in the original transcript.

Quiz Show remains one of my favorite movies of all time.

Joe

[–] shanayneigh 18 years ago

"I think the MOST IMPORTANT point here to remember, is that Cable Addict is an anal retentive dork."

Hear, hear...

"What's that smell?"

[–] sallydammit 18 years ago

what is wrong with fun?

[–] pogostiks 18 years ago

Hi

I have to admit that I too dislike the lack of adverbial use in American speech.

A typical one that makes me go crazy is "I did real good" instead of "I did really well".

The real problem here, I think, is that if you DO talk correctLY, then people begin to suspect you of not being a "regular guy". In America, sophistication - in dress, taste or language - before you are in your 50's, seem to suggest gayness, and heaven forbid that anyone ever be suspected of THAT!

Remember the Apple advertisement: Think Different!
Do you really think that the ad execs don't know that you should say "think differently?"
But they would never use that in an advertisement, because the average American would think it was snobbish!

Ah, America, always bringing things down (even an Apple ad) to the LOWEST common denominator!

PS: If you also wanna call ME anal retentive, go ahead, but just for your information, my problem tends to be the opposite!

[–] Marilynpogo 18 years ago

is that if you DO talk correctLY,

Do you mean.... if you speak correctly?

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Don't correct people if you're wrong.

[–] 18 years ago

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[–] estcst-3 18 years ago

Van Doren had a PHD in English Literature, and would never, NEVER have made such a mistake. Not a chance.

Certainly some of the finest and most notable authors of our times haven't used proper English.

[–] west-37 18 years ago

Apparently, the majority of people have used the word "easy" as an adverb in ordering their eggs "over easy", not "over easily". Think about it.

[–] torreydeluca 18 years ago

A long time ago I posted in this thread that I'd once read the transcripts of the Congressional Hearing for an undergrad college paper, and I was pretty sure that Ralph's speech at the end of the film is verbatim to the real van Doren's speech.
I recently got around to looking through my papers and books to see if I could confirm the section in question. Yes, it did take me five months and a rainy weekend with nothing to do to finally look through stuff in my room. I guess this really isn't a hot button issue for me.
Anyway, I don't have the appropriate papers in my own possession. From my search I was able to determine that the full transcript of the hearings is available in a book fully entitled:

Investigation of Television Quiz Shows: Hearings Before a Subcomittee of Interstate and Foreign Commerce, House of Representatives, 86th Congress, 1st session, Washington D.C., U.S. Government Priority Office, 1960

The library at the university I work for doesn't have the book, and neither does my city's public library. If one of you has the time (not to mention the motivation!!!) then he/she can look it up and put this to rest. I know that Harvard University has this book - in case one of us is a Crimson and has current access to their library system.
I can tell you that this transcript is 1156 pages long in most published forms, but I can't tell you what page to look on!!

[–] momlovesannie1998 18 years ago

Hey, Cable. You should see how they tore me up over on the board featuring the television show, the Medium. I posed the same point; the U.S. does not demand excellence in writing therefore the grammar basically sucks. (I know I need a noun after sucks...er, how about lemons?) Boy, did I catch hell. I agree with you 100%. Two more:

"Everyone is taking their date to the party."

"I am going to lay down now."

[–] EJF 18 years ago

To get back to the original question that was asked, the complete transcript of Van Doren's testimony -- including his statement and all the questioning -- was published in the New York Times on Nov. 3, 1959.

The line "I had all the breaks; everything came too easy" does not appear.

[–] cableaddict 18 years ago

THANKS, EJF.

I feel a lot better now!

[–] torreydeluca 18 years ago

Thanks EJF. I could've done that months ago as the university I work at has all the New York Times editions on microfiche. And the library is only a one minute walk from my office!! Oh well...
Over a decade ago I wrote a paper as an undergrad on the quiz show scandals, and had even read that very NYT edition on microfiche. I didn't recall at all seeing the complete transcript of van Doren's testimony. Shows you how well you can trust your memory on these things.
I think when I get a spare moment soon I'll check that statement out. I know that Charlie's original prepared statement was way longer than what's in the movie, but I thought that Attanasio had basically lifted certain parts of it word-for-word. I guess that section in the film about being down in the mud and building a foundation was all Attanasio's own writing, but it sure sounded like something van Doren would have said!

[–] jgravely 18 years ago

"In a way he was like the country he lived in. Everything came too easy."

That's a line quoted a couple of times from a paper one of Robert Redford's characters Hubbell Gardner wrote in the Way We Were. Hubbell Gardner and Charles Van Doren both were golden boys who seemed to have everything. I think it's just a nod to that earlier film.

It's a dirty job, but I pay clean money for it.

[–] A_Fistful_of_Pennies 15 years ago

Umm...just because he's a professor doesn't mean his spoken English is perfect.

Who speaks English "correctly"? Nobody.

[–] 15 years ago

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